I just bought my Grand AM a couple of weeks ago. I drove it to work on the toll road going 75 and the thermometer didn't overheat. It stayed a quarter up. When I came out of work, there was a pool of coolant under my car. I came back the next day to move it to another parking spot. It started up fine and I let it run for a half hour. Nothing happened. I looked the coolant tank and it was full. I'm afraid to move it. What could it be? Any input is appreciated! Bigsmoov84@wmconnect.com.
That is not Coolant. The puddle is caused by running your Air Conditioner. Check next time and let me know if I am right please.
Yup...check to see if the puddle is greenish. If so then it is coolant. If it's clear its water from the a/c.
If it is coolant it won't be green. It would have Dex Cool in it more of a pink or orange color.
My 1994 grand am, has in the last two weeks, dropped the entire coolant twice. First time was the Heater Core Cracking Out, needless to say I did not bother to replace that, I merely sawed off the back Heater Hoses and paid Four Dollars for a length of rubber hose to just bypass them at the Motor. The second time it was the lower Radiator Hose. This had been replaced 3 months earlier. The design of the Car is eccentric to say the least. The Nut on the air compressor went through this hose! I am so glad I only paid $800 for this Junker.
I now own my second Grand Am, and both seemed to fall apart at about the same mileage (150,000km). The first was owned by my parents who took very good care of it. When I purchased it from them at 140,000km, it all of a sudden needed the water pump, the serpentine belt replaced, and then the coolant started to leak and mix into the engine oil. Nearly the whole engine had to be replaced. The second Grand Am was purchased used at 120,000km. Two months after buying the car the alternator and battery were replaced, and now all of the little problems are happening, like the door will seize shut, the automatic windows are not working properly, knobs inside the car are falling off...etc. If you are planning on purchasing a Grand Am, make sure you unload it before the mileage gets too high, or you'll have a money pit on your hands! Good car for a lease!
I purchased a 1995 Grand Am Se quad 4 in Feb. I bought it from a mechanic and he told me he had completely refitted the cooling system. Water pump, water pump shaft, radiator, thermostat, and overfill tank. A month later it started overheating and I took it back to him. He replaced the gasket on the water pump and said everything was okay. Last week, it started overheating again. The only thing that hadn't been replaced was the pressure cap on the overflow tank. I replace that and 2 days ago it overheated yet again. I refilled the radiator (where it lost the water, I'll never know) and have had no more problems since then, other than the low coolant light coming on for no apparent reason. After reading through all of the comments on this model, I realize this is something that is very common. SHOULDN'T THERE BE A RECALL?
Yeah, same problems with 97 Grand AM 2.4 DOHC.
This thing will never hold its water and always spills its guts. Now it is a busted heater core and water just pours out of the drain. Definite fault by GM. A recall should be in order.
I agree with the comment about a poor design, particularly the heater core. I replaced mine and was surprised to see that the inlet tube was made of plastic, while the rest was made of aluminum. GM might have saved about 25 cents per unit, but it's cost the rest of us a lot of pain.
Ditto for the radiator, aluminum core with plastic side tanks.
Engineered with the minimum specs & cheapest materials.
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